Monday, 27 May 2013

Last night I read Electra by the great Greek tragedian, Euripides. While I love Greek mythology, I can't say I'm a huge fan of Greek drama. That said, I found more to enjoy in this play than most. I especially liked this line spoken by Electra to the corpse of the man who murdered her father:

You thought having great wealth made you a great man.But money keeps you company a little while; What's firm and lasting is man's nature, not his wealth.A noble nature is a lifelong friend, and liftsLife's burdens; wealth makes unjust league with wickedness, And, flowering a brief season, soon flies out of doors.

From Medea and Other Plays by Euripides, trans. Philip Vellacott, Penguin Classics, first published in 1963.

Saturday, 25 May 2013

And now for a quick update on softball. After three weeks of play, my Knights are
1-1. We beat the Beavers, lost to the
Spirits, and suffered one rain out. I
started a bit slowly. In my first game I
went 1-3 with an RBI and a Run scored. I
started the game at DH, but moved to Short Stop for the last three innings,
where I made a couple of plays.

In the second game, I did better, going 3-5 with 3 Runs
scored. I also pitched a complete game,
making several plays, and, most importantly, giving up no walks. We lost, but
it was tight.

Career Hits: 88

By the way, big No-Prize to anyone who can name the original team to wear the Knights logo above...

Saturday, 18 May 2013

For the last couple of days, I’ve been constructing a new
Space Hulk. After a lot of deliberation,
I decided I didn’t want to invest a lot of money in it. So, I printed out some floor tiles from the
old Guncrawl game, mounted them on foam board, and gave each tile a 15mm wall. I wanted to give the impression of a wall,
but I didn’t want the walls to get in the way of actually moving miniatures.

While my cuts and measurements aren’t perfect, and I don’t
have a means of actually connecting the pieces to one another, it seems to work
well enough if I’m careful. So, after a couple of construction sessions, I
thought I had just enough pieces to give it a test run in a short game...

General Charbon had been making a surprise inspection of
the small military research facility in the Trylan system. As his corvette was pulling away from
the planet after a successful inspection, the ship was ambushed by a Dalek
cruiser. The Daleks quickly disabled
the corvette and launched boarders. With
the primary transporters damaged, a squad from the 109th Inquisitorial Regiment rushed General
Charbon towards the small cargo transporter at the rear of the ship, but the
Dalek’s were closing in...

Using a modified version of the Starship Troopers rules,
I set out to see how many of the poor humans would escape the Dalek attack. In a real surprise, one member of the 109th managed a lucky shot on the first turn, blasting a Dalek to pieces and drawing
first blood.

However, from there things didn’t go so well. The main Dalek assault crashed through the
first barricade with little difficulty. Although the troopers fell back, they were caught in a crossfire in the
corridor behind. Three troopers fell to
the Dalek death rays. But their
sacrifice had bought enough time for the General to reach the transporter and
beam down to the planet.

As the Daleks rounded the corner to the cargo hold, they
came up against the trooper's last line of defence. Here a second Dalek finally fell to
concentrated laser fire. After the squad
psyker also beamed to safety, the sergeant ordered his mean to fall back. One trooper made it to the transporter, and
beamed to safety, but two more fell to Dalek fire.

The game ended with the sergeant, the only man left alive
on the ship, jumping onto the transporter pad and exchanging fire with the
Dalek’s as he transported out.

Although five troopers had fallen during the defense of
the ship, they had allowed the General, and three other’s to beam to
safety. They had also taken out two
Daleks during the fight.

Down on the planet, the General sends out a distress
call, but will any help arrive before the Dalek’s land?

Sunday, 12 May 2013

For awhile
now, I’ve been researching the miniature market, trying to find figures to
construct a kind of generic science-fiction force. After a lot of consideration, I’ve finely
done a bit of painting, and can present the first couple of figures for my new
United Earth Defence Force.

Despite wanting to include some big battle robot models, I wanted the force to have an old-school science fiction look, the kind of
hard-edged, chunky science-fiction from the seventies and eighties. The big
guy here is a Robotech model, which I ordered from Hobby Link Japan. It only cost about £5, wasn’t too difficult
to assemble, and is just tough enough that I have no fear in using it as a
wargaming piece. I tried to paint it
with a grubby, battle worn appearance. This is the first time I’ve attempt to paint scarred metal – that is
edges where the paint has scrapped away, leaving bare metal underneath. I still need some practice on this, but
it came out pretty well. I also
splattered black wash randomly over the model, to give it the dirty,
low-tech kind of look I'm going for. I figure it is
actually a mech, with a single pilot inside.

The two
soldiers are marines from Defiance Games.
I’ve got a bit of a love-hate relationship going on with these
figures. I love the ascetic of these
figs, which seems to be drawn from the film Aliens.
They are simple, uncomplicated plastic figures that weren’t too difficult to
assemble. On the flip side, the
detailing on them is very soft, by which I mean that the edges on the detail tend to
be rounded and flow into the main body of the figure. This makes it hard to pick out the details, especially for someone like me, who likes to use black-lining between figure elements. The other issue is that there really are a
very limited number of different figure poses you can make without doing some
difficult conversions or bringing in pieces from other sets.

All of that
said, looks wise, they were exactly what I was seeking, and I plan on painting
a full platoon at some point. I think I
might repaint the soldier’s visor read to match the mech.

Saturday, 11 May 2013

And now for something rather silly. Responding to a
challenge set by my friend Phil, I present the starting line-up for the Greeks
in their big show-down versus Troy.

1. Little
Ajax (CF). A true speedster, Ajax can cover a lot of ground in center. That
same speed should also lead to a high on-base percentage. A tad on the arrogant
side, his mouth could get him in real trouble one day.

2. Diomedes
(3B). Despite his youth, Diomedes is
already a veteran. His skill and in-game
smarts make him the perfect number two-hitter, who can be counted on to hit the
ball to the right side to advance a
runner or lay down a bunt when necessary.
Also, his calm demeanour should prove an asset while playing the hot
corner. This guy has a very bright
future.

3. Achilles
(P). Let’s face it, this guy is Cy Young
and Ted Williams rolled into one. On the
mound he is (almost) unhittable, while at the plate he’s got the sweetest swing
of the ancient world. Unfortunately,
he’s fated not to go the full nine. *

5. Agamemnon
(RF). Despite his poor decision-making, which often leads to high strike-out
totals, there is no doubting Agamemnon’s power. Off-the-field issues could
prove his downfall.

6. Nestor
(2B). A wily old veteran, Nestor brings a huge amount of experience to the
team. This guy has seemingly played for every one (including the legendary Argonauts travelling team). While he no longer swings the lumber like he
used to, he’s still a solid player on both sides of the ball.

7. Menelaus (LF).
While lacking the pure power of his bother, Agamemnon, Menelaus is no slouch in
a one-on-one match-up. However, his marriage could prove a distraction.

8. Odysseus
(C). Although considering retirement, Odysseus can still play the game. With
his cunning and tactical awareness, he’s the perfect guy to be calling the
pitches. He seems to have a knack for knowing exactly when to call for a
curve-ball or change-up.

9. Antilochus
(SS). The son of Nestor, Antilochus
combines good speed with great hands.
Just the sort of guy you want out at short. Still young, his swing should develop in
time.

Bullpen

Patroclus
(P). When Achilles leaves the game, there really is only one guy who can ‘don
the armor’. Although lacking Achilles god-given talents, he’s a man the Greeks
will follow.

* In fact,
Achilles career will be tragically cut short after failed Tommy John’s
surgery.

Wednesday, 8 May 2013

After three
full days in Meteora, we decided it was time to move on. There were a few paths
we hadn’t explored, a cave we hadn’t visited, but we both felt that to stay any
longer would have suffered from diminishing returns. Also, Steph was keen to
have a full day in the northern city of Thessaloniki, from which we were
schedule to fly home.

Upon
arriving in Meteora, we had been delighted to discover that there was a direct
train from the town to Thessaloniki once a day. So on a cool, clear morning, we
left our friendly guest house, carrying our bags and followed by an overly
friend dog, and walked down to the train station. The train rolled in exactly
on time, covered in the customary graffiti. Inside, the train was old and worn,
but not uncomfortable. We had assigned seats, but there were very few
passengers.

The journey
lasted nearly four hours, but passed by quickly enough. As usual, I spent a
majority of the journey staring out of windows, watching the country flow by.
We knew the train would be passing near mount Olympus and hoped for a good view
of the peaks, but by the time we rolled by, the clouds and mist had closed in
and there was very little to see. In
truth, the entire journey afforded very little to see - lots of little towns,
too small or lacking in tourist interest to even make it into our guidebooks.
The second half of the journey hugged the eastern coastline of Greece, so we
did get some nice views out toward the sea, but the land seemed dry and
undeveloped.

Our only
regret on that journey was that we hadn’t packed enough food and water, as
neither was available on the train. By the time we pulled into Thessaloniki, we
were so hungry that we stopped to eat in the train station, at a fast-food
chain called ‘Goodies’. It wasn’t the
worse fast food ever.

After the
peace of Delphi and Meteora, it was a bit shocking to step out onto the crowded
and noisy streets. Thessaloniki is a large and sprawling city. At first glance
it appeared ugly and intimidating. After taking a moment to get our bearings,
we set off into the heart of the city, carrying our bags, and hoping it wasn’t
too far to our hotel. Well, we got a bit lost, but we found it in the end.

Our hotel,
which had been chosen based on its cost (cheap) and its central location, was
an interesting building. I suppose it
was once a grand old Victorian style hotel, as it appeared to have been
constructed for giants. The doors were at least nine feet tall, and the
ceilings at least fifteen and possibly more.
The bathroom in our room was obviously a later addition. The view from our window looked out onto a
messy collection of the backs of other buildings, most with balconies crowded
with junk. Still, it was cheap, not
uncomfortable, and came with a half-hearted breakfast, which was still better
than nothing.

After
dumping our stuff, we set off for the waterfront, hoping a bit of sea air would
help blow away the stiffness of travel. Thessaloniki’s sea front is a long
curved harbour, paved all the way around.
It begins at the actual shipping harbour, and runs around until it
reaches the White Tower, an old medieval tower, and the city’s most
recognizable landmark. The walk is
pleasant enough, although the road that runs next to it is always busy, and
just on the other side of the road is a nearly endless stretch of bars and
restaurants that are busy during the day and overflowing at night.

For me,
Thessaloniki’s only real attraction was its archaeology museum, which is
top-notch. Rightly famous for the huge amount of golden treasuries from
Macedonia, it also contains a nice collection of other artifacts from Ancient
Greece and Rome. My wife was also interested
in seeing the city’s small, Jewish museum.
The Jews have a long, varied, and interesting history and association
with the city, and, despite its small size, the museum does a very good job of
presenting it. (Once again, they could
make it a little easier to find!).

Between the
museums, and a lot of sitting in the shade by the white tower, gazing out at
the sea, we managed to fill the rest of the day.

On our last
full day in Greece, we decided to walk up the city, following the old Roman
walls, to explore the ‘Old Turkish Quarter’ and just see what we could see. On
the way, we stopped by the church of St. Dimitris, notable for two
reasons. First, it contains the relics
of St. Dimitris, patron saint of the city, and this is still a big, important
draw. Of more interest to me was the large crypt, much of which is open to the
public. Although it is empty now, save a few broken pieces from long lost
tombs, it was fun to wander amongst the dim, echoing chambers.

As we left
the church and started up the hill, we soon realized that the day was one of
the hottest we’d experienced in Greece. Luckily, since we had no particular
schedule or time-table, we were able to stop whenever we wished for a sit and a
drink. We stopped for one particular drink at a cafe that sat on a ledge above
most of the city, and from which you could look down over the rooftops and out
over the sea. As I was staring out, sipping my coke, I spotted an odd looking
bit of cloud. As I looked closer, I realized it wasn’t a cloud, but the
snow-capped peaks of a distant mountain. The actual body of the mountain had
faded to a deep blue which had sunk into the sky and ocean around it. I pointed
this out to Steph, and she realized that it must be Mount Olympus. Wow,
suddenly it all seemed to make sense. There was the top of the mountain,
seemingly floating in the sky, like...well, like the heavens, I guess. It was a
magical little moment for me.

At one
point, Thessaloniki had a pretty extensive set of Roman walls (later added to and
improved in the Byzantine era) and a good chunk of these walls still stand. We
wandered around these for a bit, taking in the views. At one point a Greek
woman came by, shook her head at us, and then showed us where to get the really
good view by ducking through a hole in a fence.

From there,
we wandered around the Old Turkish quarter, which, in truth, didn’t seem either
old, or particularly Turkish. Then we headed back down to the main section of
town. We passed by the giant ‘Rotunda’, and extremely impressive building,
originally built by the Roman Emperor for an unknown purpose, then made into a
church of St. George, then into a Mosque, then back to a church. Now, it sits completely empty, except for
scaffolding. You can wander in – it is strange being in such a huge building
with nothing in it. The Greeks don’t seem quite sure what to do with the
building now, and probably wouldn’t have the money if they did, so there it
stands for the moment.

We also
stopped for a break at one of Thessaloniki’s famous sweet shops and ordered a small
selection of unknown pastries. Now, I’m a man who likes his sugar, but one bite
of most of these little morsels was all I could stand. To simulate the
experience at home, go to your kitchen cupboard, get a jar of honey, and drink
it. Sprinkle in a few nuts if you are so inclined. Unsurprisingly, Steph loved them.

We had
dinner late that evening, although we were still only just finishing as most of
the Greeks were coming in. As we walked out of the restaurant in the cool and
dark of the night, the whole city of Thessaloniki seemed to make more sense. In
the dark, most of the ugly graffiti was lost, and the streets were alive with
hordes of people. Thessaloniki is a University town, and it appeared that all
of the young men and women that had seemed absent in much of the rest of
Greece, were here. Nor did this crowd
seem to be worried about the economy; they were here to have a good time.

Well, it was
good to see, but for Steph and I, our good time was coming to a close. We took
a slow walk back to our hotel, in no real hurry, but with nothing much left to
do.

The next
morning, we paid our bill early and caught a taxi to the airport, which is some
ways out of town. As it turned out, we
arrived so early, that British Airways hadn’t even set up their check-in booth
yet. Time passed, as it always does, and
eventually we were on our plane, flying back to England.

My wife and
I have a joke that is probably shared by many who live in Britain: ‘How do you
know when you’re home? It’s raining’.
Although we loved our Greece Adventure, I think, more than any of our other
trips, we were happy to arrive home. While it is often cold and wet, England is
a beautiful country. It was nice to get home to where the air is fresh and
clear, the land is green and alive, and the graffiti is kept to a minimum.